The kingdom of God is like the yeast that leavened three measures of flour
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke
Luke 13:18-21

Jesus said, ‘What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it with? It is like a mustard seed which a man took and threw into his garden: it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air sheltered in its branches.’
  Another thing he said, ‘What shall I compare the kingdom of God with? It is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.’

The Gospel of the Lord

The Atomic Bomb of Love

It’s clear that the kingdom of God doesn’t arrive all at once; instead, God plants it, and it slowly matures in my soul. The Lord stands before me on the cross, giving Himself for the salvation of what I hold most dear in this world—my spouse. He allows me to look upon Him, letting His sacrifice seep into my heart, drawing me to fall in love with Him.
He appears before me in the Eucharist, where I see Him break and pour out His Blood for my spouse. And He waits patiently for me to respond… He gradually conquers my heart, making me His own, until I surrender everything to Him, celebrating His enthronement in my heart.
“I am Yours, for You I was born; what would You have me do?”

Applied to Married Life:

Sophia: Can you believe it? We’ve been married for over 30 years, and our love keeps growing. With our stumbles to keep us humble, but still, it’s growing.
Arthur: Saint John Paul II’s teachings on marriage are a boundless treasure trove, revealing the riches of our sacrament little by little. I’m truly amazed by it.
Sophia: The Holy Spirit, an endless source of love, wisdom, knowledge… And the seed grows and grows, reaching our children, family, friends, even strangers…
Arthur: The atomic bomb of Love has exploded between us, and as long as we stay connected to the Vine, this is unstoppable. Long live Project Marital Love!
Sophia: Long live!

Mother,

I love this path you have called us to walk. Thank you, Blessed Mother. How could I ever repay you?

GOSPEL

He chose twelve of them, whom he also named apostles.  
Reading from the holy Gospel according to St. Luke 6:12-19  

Jesus went up to the mountain to pray,
and he spent the night in prayer to God.
When day came, he called his disciples to himself,
and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:
Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew,
James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew,
Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus,
Simon who was called a Zealot,
and Judas the son of James,
and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

He then came down with them and stopped at a piece of level ground where there was a large gathering of his disciples, with a great crowd of people from all parts of Judaea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon

who had come to hear him and to be cured of their diseases. People tormented by unclean spirits were also cured,

and everyone in the crowd was trying to touch him because power came out of him that cured them all.

Word of the Lord.  

They do not nullify your dignity.

What attracts people to Jesus the most is the mercy of God. The more aware we are of our need for Him, the more “interest” arises to draw closer to Him. Then love will come because the one who has been forgiven much loves much.

The Lord, like in the story of the Prodigal Son, does not see our sins but our wasted dignity, and He comes to restore it and to give us back the dignity of children who are admitted once again into the Father’s house. But mercy is not only compassion; it is also bringing good out of all evil. And that is what Jesus does. Blessed mercy of God that recovers us in our lost dignity. What good do I draw from the evil of my husband? How do I collaborate to restore his wasted dignity?

Grounded in Married Life:

Carlos: What allows you to love me in the moments when I am not loving you?

Sonia: For me, it is looking to the Lord, delving into His Heart, and acting as He would out of love for Him. And you, what gives you strength?

Carlos: For me, after the Lord has shown me your worth in prayer, the value of your soul, and what you are called to be, the desire to give myself to you calls me. In those moments, I continue to see the enormous value you have and the immense good you are simply for being loved by God for who you are. Your sins do not take that away from you. Your sins do not nullify your dignity as a daughter of God. That is why it is worth it to commit myself to your salvation, to pay for your sins and bear the consequences, as Christ did for you in Gethsemane. As I am a part of Him, I must do the same.

Sonia: How beautiful, because in the end, we both draw good from each other’s evil. I find refuge in the Heart of the Lord that protects me from a bad gaze, and you lean on the value that God has conferred upon me.

Carlos: That is what true help is called, from one to the other.

Mother,

Before sin, love turns into mercy. We are sinners; therefore, we can only be united by the merciful love of Jesus. Blessed be He forever.

GOSPEL

Master, I want to see. 
Reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark 10:46-52

As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd,
Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus,
sat by the roadside begging.
On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth,
he began to cry out and say,
“Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.”
And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent.
But he kept calling out all the more,
“Son of David, have pity on me.”
Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”
So they called the blind man, saying to him,
“Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you.”
He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus.
Jesus said to him in reply, “What do you want me to do for you?”
The blind man replied to him, “Master, I want to see.”
Jesus told him, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.”
Immediately he received his sight
and followed him on the way.

Word of the Lord.

I like it more and more.

Apparently, Bartimaeus was not blind from birth, but rather an illness affected his vision.  
The same happens with sins, which tremendously affect the vision of the soul.  
That is why today I make this prayer my own: My Lord, my Master, Merciful Father, have compassion on me, for I know that I have no merits to come to You through the union with my husband, and I know I do not have the ability to earn them. I completely depend on You and Your mercy. I know that You love me and cannot resist my call if it is sincere. I have full faith that You can purify me and transform my heart of stone into a heart of flesh. Call me, Lord, call me to You, to Your feet.

Grounded in Married Life:

Marisa: The more I know the Lord, the more I fall in love with Him.  
Luis: The more I know the Lord, the more I fall in love with you, the more I strongly feel the call to become one with you, and the more He empowers me. I experience a supernatural love that unites me to you and is stronger than I am and than my sins.  
Marisa: Blessed are the two calls from God, to be Christians and to be Spouses. What a precious plan for us.  
Luis: I love them, and I like them more and more. I like the Lord more and more, and I like you more and more. Now I understand what the Lord meant when He said, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Mother,

We have all our faith placed in the Lord, and He who called us through you will complete His work in us. Blessed be the Lord who called us by our name.

GOSPEL

If you do not convert, you will all perish in the same way.
Reading from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Luke 13:1-9

Some people told Jesus about the Galileans
whose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices.
He said to them in reply,
“Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way
they were greater sinners than all other Galileans?
By no means!
But I tell you, if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!
Or those eighteen people who were killed
when the tower at Siloam fell on them–
do you think they were more guilty
than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem?
By no means!
But I tell you, if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!”

And he told them this parable:
“There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard,
and when he came in search of fruit on it but found none,
he said to the gardener,
‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree
but have found none.
So cut it down.
Why should it exhaust the soil?’
He said to him in reply,
‘Sir, leave it for this year also,
and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it;
it may bear fruit in the future.
If not you can cut it down.’

Word of the Lord.

Postage paid.

The Lord expects to gather fruits of love in our marriage, fruits produced by the Holy Spirit. But instead, He finds “works of the flesh” in their place: “enmities, discord, jealousy, anger, ambitions, divisions, dissensions, rivalries.”

So we might try to point to our spouse as the responsible one for all that, which is quite difficult, because two do not get angry if one does not want to.

But let us suppose that my husband is largely to blame. Am I going to point him out so that he can be cut off and torn away from my side? Or am I going to offer to dig around him and give him the love he needs, asking for another chance for him or her?

Grounded in Married Life:

Lola: Who are you and what are you doing in our house with that sickle?
Death: I am Death, and I come to reap the life of your husband and take him away… Let me see the destination on the receipt? To hell. I’m taking him to hell.
Lola: No, please, don’t take him away!
Death: But yesterday you were calling me asking me to take him away once and for all.
Lola: Yeah, but I didn’t mean it seriously.
Death: Oh, well, I’m sorry. I’m already here, and I have to take someone. Keep in mind that I’ve already been paid the shipping costs.
Lola: Then take me instead of him!
Death: Now that’s a good one. The first time that’s happened to me. But do you love him that much? If you put yourself like this, I’m going to have to leave him a few more years. Don’t come back to me with complaints later.
Lola: Yes, please. I promise to give him all my affection and tenderness so as not to exasperate him and to make his path to love easier.
Death: With that, you would pay me more than the value of the bundle.
Lola: He’s not a bundle; he’s my husband. And don’t you ever speak of him like that again or I will kill you.
Death: Wow, that’s funny. Are you going to kill Death?
Lola: Jesus did it, so in His name I tell you: Go and don’t come back as long as I don’t stop loving my husband.
(And Death left in search of another less-loved husband)

Mother,

I love my husband with all my strength. Do not let them take him away until he is sanctified by the action of the Holy Spirit through me. Blessed be the Lord who allows me to be his Simon of Cyrene.

GOSPEL

You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky; why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

Reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 12: 54-59

Jesus said to the crowds,
“When you see a cloud rising in the west
you say immediately that it is going to rain–and so it does;
and when you notice that the wind is blowing from the south
you say that it is going to be hot–and so it is.
You hypocrites!
You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky;
why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

“Why do you not judge for yourselves what is right?
If you are to go with your opponent before a magistrate,
make an effort to settle the matter on the way;
otherwise your opponent will turn you over to the judge,
and the judge hand you over to the constable,
and the constable throw you into prison.
I say to you, you will not be released
until you have paid the last penny.”

The word of the Lord.

Your heart, my weakness.

In our marital relationship, we usually know what is going to upset our spouse. Other times, as the conversation evolves, we know that “it is going to create discomfort.” The problem lies in continuing on that path knowing that it is hurting my spouse and that the situation is heating up.

The Lord wants us to predict where that action will lead and to try to redirect it before we enter into conflict and break the precious communion that kept us united.

It is the time to submit, to renounce… and to love, to love above all.

Grounded in Married Life:

Myriam: What are you doing reading those private revelations? Didn’t you say that those are not dogmas of faith and that we don’t have to believe in them?

Pedro: I know I’ve been quite insistent about that, and we’ve even argued about my inflexibility, but the Lord has shown me that I love you too much to have this point of discord between us. So instead of having this friction between us, I’ve decided to delve deeper into these writings to help me love the Lord as you do.

Myriam: How sweet you are! I just have to love you… Thank you for not closing yourself off to what makes my heart vibrate.

Pedro: Even if I wanted to, I can’t close myself off to such a beautiful heart. After the Sacred Heart of Jesus, it is my second weakness, although you are becoming more and more one.

Mother,

May Love reign far above reasons. It is a pity to see marriages that love each other but destroy each other. Blessed be the Sacred Heart of Jesus.